Dell's Alienware division has previously confirmed working on a Steam Machine and now the fruits of that work have entered the spotlight at E3. Alienware Alpha is a Steam Machine-like Mini PC that is designed for living room gaming without actually utilizing Valve's Steam OS or its (delayed) Steam Controller.

Alpha comes with Windows 8.1 pre-installed and makes use of a Console-mode UI allowing users easy access to Steam Big Picture. The system will be bundled with an Xbox 360 controller and will have a base price tag of $549. For that amount you get an Intel Core i3 (Haswell) processor, 4 GB of DDR3-1600 memory, a 2 GB NVIDIA Maxwell-based graphics card (GTX 750 Ti maybe?), and a 500 GB hard drive. Higher-priced configurations include Core i5/i7 processors, 8 GB of RAM, and 1/2 TB HDDs.

Alienware's compact system also features 802.11 ac WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0, Gigabit Ethernet, four USB ports (two USB 2.0 and two USB 3.0), and HDMI pass-through. The Alpha is set to launch this holiday season.Source: PC Gamer

by: dwadeWon't buy, but damn... That looks better than 100% of ITX cases in the market.

pretty plain, tasteless, lack of connector (probably lack of power too ... ) surely overpriced, humpf a typical Alienware pc (well they did powerful PC/Notebook but at what price ...)

on a second thought 549$ pricetag for the lower is not so bad, considering i get a (ATX sized) 4690K/Z97/8gb 2133/R9 290/Air540/Integra R2 650w for 400$ more (unless they have a i7/780Ti in that form-factor for 849 or less ) nope ... in the end it's still too much for what it gives...

self assembled PC's are still the way to go ... brand assembled PC will always do unnecessary compromise to either give a good price and lower than low end hardware or give a awesome hardware at a ridiculously high premium over regular price (not mentioning that you can do a way better mITX build than that ...)

lucky for Dell, there will still be customers for that kind of product

by: GreiverBladeon a second thought 549$ pricetag for the lower is not so bad, considering i get a (ATX sized) 8320/990X/8gb 1866/R9 290/carbide spec-01/Integra G2 650w for 300$ more (unless they have a i7/780Ti in that form-factor for 849 or less ) nope ... in the end it's still too much for what it gives...

It doesnt stand out from all plane front panel itx cases and its price is not bad with Windows and Xbox controller included.
The problem is with these small PCs that they might not be able to run smoothly at FHD but then theres Gforce Experience.http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/NVIDIA/GeForce_GTX_750_Ti/15.html
Bigger cards are problematic in this form factor.

by: huguberhartIt doesnt stand out from all plane front panel itx cases and its price is not bad with Windows and Xbox controller included.
The problem is with these small PCs that they might not be able to run smoothly at FHD but then theres Gforce Experience.http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/NVIDIA/GeForce_GTX_750_Ti/15.html
Bigger cards are problematic in this form factor.

yep i know that ... so that's why i said "lucky for Dell there will still be customers for that kind of product" you want to pay the small price you get undersized component, you pay the high price you get "average" component just enough to play FHD all settings on high for 1yrs then poof ALW propose you a new one with "upgraded parts" (or you can upgrade Via ALW/DELL and pay a nice premium over hand picked pieces...)

also the price i say for 400$ more include a Xbox controller even if i widely prefer a keyboard/mouse combo :)

perhaps a geforce 860m combined with a 45 watt i5? that would be a pretty decent gaming rig, since the 860m is surprisingly powerful, and this would probably be hooked to a tv, where super high details arnt always necessary.